Knotter and binder



3 Sheets-Sheet 1 (No Model.)

W. CONNOR. KNOTTBR AND BINDER.

. No. 540,950. Patented June 11, 1895.

WITNESSES:

INVENTOI? dn/nm BY ATTORNEYS.

e Nomus PETERS co. mmo-LfinoAvAsHm-e'rom o. c.

(N0 Mpdel.) A 3 Shets-Sheet 2. W. CONNOR.

KNOTTBR AND BINDER.-

No. 540,950. Patented June :11; 1895.

mvguron W/TNESSE A TTORNEYS.

m: minus PETERS cu pumaumm WASMINQTUN. n. c.

'(No Model.) s Sheets-SheetB.

. W. CONNOR. KNOTTER AND BINDER.

No. 540,950. Patented Jun 11, 1895;.

a: 2 aa 229'. a

WITNESSES: INVENTOH 5 1 423 W ATTORNEYS.

WALTER CONNOR,

FFICE.

PATENT OF TOLEDO, OHIO.

KNOTTER AND BINDER.

. SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 540,950, dated June 11, 1895.

Application filed March 8, 1894.

. that class of devices which are used for binding bundles and tying knots in the binding twine; and the object of my invention is to produce a comparatively simple device which is hand-operated and which enables small bundles or packages, such for instance as bunches of flowers andthe like, to be rapidly and nicely tied,the tying being automatically done, and afurther object of my invention is to provide mechanism which, besides apply ing the twine and tying the knot, severs the twine after the knot is tied and also registers the number of bunches tied.

To these ends my invention consists of certain features .of construction and combinations of parts, which will be hereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which similar figures of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure l is a broken plan View of my improved device with the top plate or side of the frame removed and with the needle in open position to receive a bundle. Fig. 2 is a detail perspective view of the knotting mechanism, showing the first position of the knotter. Fig. 3 is a similar view illustrating the second position of the knotter after it has formed a loop. Fig. 4 is a broken plan similar to Fig. 1, but with the needle closed around the bunch'to be tied. Fig. 5 is a detail per spective view illustrating the third position of the knotter ready to pull the loop over the double portion of 'the twine to form a knot. Fig. 6 is a vertical section on the line 6 6 of v Fig. 1. Fig. 7 is a broken plan view of the device. Fig. 8 is a vertical section on the line 8 8 of Fig. 4. Fig. 9 is a vertical section on the line 9 9 of Fig. 4.-, and Fig. 10 is a detail face view of the dial.

The machine is provided with two side plates 10 which constitute the frame and be tween which the mechanism is held, these plates being reduced at one end to form a Serial No. 502,874. (No model.)

handle 11 and having between them at one edge a piece 12 which holds them the necessary distance apart. The frame, however, may be made in any desired way.- Near the reduced ends of the plates and at one edge of the machine is pivoted an elbow handle lever 14:, which swings between the members of the handle 11 and which has one arm 15 projecting between the plates 10, near the rear ends of the plates, this arm serving to operate the mechanism, as hereinafter described, and the arm is held normally forward and the lever 14 normally outward by a spiral spring 16, which is secured to the lever and to one of the plates 10. When the lever 14 is swung inward between the handles 11 it works the mechanism which makes the knot and moves the register, as hereinafter described, and when the lever is released the spring 16 swings it back to its original'position so that the mechanism operated by the lever is also thrown back to normal position. Any other suitable spring may be substituted for the spring 16 which gives the necessary movement to the handle lever.

' The plates 10 are recessed at one end, as shown at 17, so as to conveniently receive the bunch to be tied, and a curved needle 18 swings opposite this recess, the needle being substantially like the needle of an ordinary harvester and binder and it is fulcrumed at one end, as shown at 19, near which end it is provided with a lateral projection 20 to which is attached the connecting rod'2l which extends rearwardly between the plates 10'and is pivoted to the arm 15 of the lever 1 1. Thus the swinging of thelever operates the needle. The needle is provided at its free end with the customary eye 22 which receives the twine 23, this running through an eye 24 on the top of the machine, and the ball of twine is held in any suitable cage, such for instance as the cage 25.

The twine is held, while the knot is being tied, by a catch plate 26, which is revoluble and is provided with three convex ended arms, although it may be provided with a greater or less number of arms, the plate binding the twine between itself and one of the plates 10, as shown in Fig. 9. The catch plate 26 turns in a suitable guard 27 from which one edge of it projects and it is carried by a revoluble shaft 28 which is hung in suitable supports 29 and is provided with a pinion 30 which meshes with and is turned by a rack 31 on one end of a tilting arm 32,which arm is fulcrumed on the shaft of the registering mechanism and has its upper or rear end pivoted to a connecting rod 34 which is hooked into an eye 35 on the arm 15 of the lever 14 and has a free movement in the eye, its movement being limited by the stop 36. See Figs. 1 and 4. This movement is made so as to give some play to the connecting rod, in order that the catch plate 26 may not be moved until it is time to finish the tying of the knot and permitthe releasing of the twine. The arm 32 is moved only each timea knot is tied. The registry mechanism may be worked from it, and to this end the arm is provided with a pawl 37 which engages a ratchet wheel 38 having twelve teeth, as the register is intended to count the number of bunches tied, but it will be understood that the teeth maybe varied in number according to circumstances. The ratchet wheel 38 is mounted on the shaft 33 which carries a single tooth 39 adapted at every revolution of the ratchet wheel 38 and shaft 33 to engage one of the teeth of a second ratchet wheel 40, which is secured to a shaft 41 extending outward through one of the plates 10 and carrying at its outer end a hand 42 which moves opposite a dial 42. It will be seen that the hand will only be moved at each movement of the ratchet wheel 40, and this will move only at every revolution of the ratchet wheel 38, the movement of the hand registering the fact that one dozen bunches have been tied.

The knot is tied by means of the knotter 43 which has a hook 44 carried by a shaft 45 which turns in suitable bearings 46 and is revolved by mechanism to be described presently, and pivoted in the end of the shaft,

near the base of the hook 44, is a second hook or finger 47, the point of which is adapted to strike the point of the hook 44 and the finger or book 47 has a rearwardly-projecting curved shank 48 which enables the knotter to beheld closed, excepting when the twine is to be released, as will appear presently.

The knotter turns in a circular opening 49, see Fig. 9, of a guide 50, the guide being open on one side, as shown at '51, and when the knotter is revolved the shank 48 of the hook or finger 47 engages the circular wall of the opening 49 and thus the knotter is held closed until the side opening 51 is reached, when the spring 48 between the shank 48 and the shaft 45, forces the said shank outward, thus opening the knotter.

I do notconfine my invention to the precise form of knotter used, as other knotters may be substituted without departing from the principle of my invention.

The shaft 45 is provided with a pinion 52, see Fig. 6, which is engaged and turned by a rack 53 on one side of the main driving wheel 54, which is secured to a shaft 55 arranged transversely between the plates 10, this shaft having also secured to it a ratchet wheel 56 which is straddled by the ratchet bars 57, these having teeth to engage the teeth of the ratchet wheel, and it will be seen that when one bar is pulled in onedirection, it turns the ratchet wheel in the same direction and when the other bar is pushed in the opposite direction, the movement of the ratchet bar again moves the ratchet wheel and thus the wheel 54 is intermittently revolved. The ratchet bars 57 are fulcrumed on the lower end of the arm 15 on the handle lever 14, as shown in Figs. 1 and 4, and attached to the bars, at opposite sides of the fulcrum, are connecting rods 59 which are attached at their upper or inner ends to the ends of the. spring arms 60 which are carried by the lever 14.

When the knot is tied, the ends of the twine which encircles the bunch are caught in a notch 61 in the slide bar which moves transversely adjacent to the knotter and which carries at its inner end a knife 63 adapted to sever the twine behind the knot. The slide bar 62 is at its outer end secured to a tilting lever 64 which is fnlcrumed on the outer side of one of the plates 10, as shown best in Fig. 6, and this lever is actuated bya rod 65 which is coupled to the lever near the center and extends inward through one of the plates 10, merging at its inner end in a spring 66 which at one end is fastened to the inner side of the plate and which extends into the path of a cam 67 on the main wheel 54. This cam 67is placed in such a waythat it will not engage the spring 66 until after the knot is tied, and then it strikes the spring forcing outward the rod 65 and swinging outward the lever 64 which draws out the slide bar 62, pulling out the twine and drawing the knife 63 across the twine behind the knot, as shown in Fig. 5, thus securing it.

The machine is'operated as follows: In its normal position the needle 18 is open and the twine 23 extends across one side of the opening or recess formed between the needle and the curved wall of the recess 17, so that when the stalks of a bunch to be tied are pushed into the convex side of the needle and into the recess 17, they carry inward the twine 23, which is thus made to partially encircle the bunch. The handle 14 is then pressed inward between the handle members 11, and this tilts the arm 15, draws on the rod 21, and swings the needle 18 around the bunch, thus carrying the twine 23 around it and the catch plate 26 is turned so as to engage the two strands of the twine, as illustrated in Fig. 2, while the knotter, in a closed position, is turned so as to partially twist the nearly parallel ends of the twine, as shown in Fig. 2. The continued movement of the knotter causes it to twist the twine still more, thus forming a double loop, as shown in Fig. 3, while the shank 48 of the hook or finger 47 registers the side opening of the guide 50 and permits the grip to fly open, as shown in Fig.

3, with the open hooks or jaws of the knotter adjacent to the catch plate and to the. double twine which is held by the catch plate. The further movement of the knotter causes the shank 48 to again strike the guide, thus closing the hooks or jaws of the knotter over the doubled ends of the twine, as illustratedin Fig. 5,'and at this moment the slide bar 62 is I pulled outward in the manner already described, thus pulling upon the doubled portion of the twine and, as this portion is also graspedby the knotter, the loop is pulled off the knotter andover'the double portion of the twine as shownclearly in Fig. 5, and a knot is tied and theknife slips across the twine and severs it. The lever 1-1 is then released and the springldthenthrows the parts allback tonormal position. As soon as the knot is tied, the catch plate 26 is turned so as to be ready to again engage the twine, and the register is operated in the manner already Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In a knotter and hinder, the combination with-a frame, of a shaft, a knotter carried thereby, a transverse shaft, geared'with theknotter shaft, a ratchet wheel on the said transverse shaft, an elbowlever pivoted to the frame, ratchet bars secured to the vertical member of the elbow lever and engaging the said ratchet wheel, spring arms carried by the elbow lever, and rods secured to-the ratchet bars and to the said spring arms, substantially as described.

2. In a knotter and binder, the combination with a pivoted needle, a pivoted elbow lever,

1 and a rodpivoted to the needle and to the elbow lever, of a shaft, a catch or holder on one end of the shaft, a pinion on the'said gaginglthe said pinion, and a rod connected to the tilting arm and elbow lever, substantially as described.

3. In a knotter and binder, the combination with a pivoted needle, a pivoted elbow lever, and a rod connecting the needle to the lever, of a shaft, a catch or holder on one end of the shaft, a pinion on said shaft, a tilting arm provided with a rack engaging the said pinion, a rod connecting the tilting arm to the elbow lever, a kn otter shaft, a knotter carried thereby, a transverse shaft geared with the knotter shaft, a ratchet wheel on the transverse shaft, ratchet bars secured to the elbow lever and engaging the ratchet wheel, spring arms carried by the said elbow lever, and rods secured to the ratchet bars and to the said arms, substantially as herein shown and described.

4. In a knotter and binder, the combination of a pivoted needle, a rotary holder, a pinion on the shaft of the holder, a tilting arm provided with a rack engaging the pinion onthe shaft of the holder, a rotary knotter,a transverse shaft geared with the knotter, a ratchet .wheel on the shaft, a cam also on the said shaft, ratchet bars engaging the ratchet wheel, an elbow lever to which the ratchet bars are pivoted, a slide bar notched and provided with a knife at its inner end, a pivoted lever to which theslide bar is connected, a rod'se- 

